They are paying payroll taxes, which really is an income tax. Including the employers share, that amounts to 15.3% of income. Payroll taxes pay for the benefits of those retired. SS is a pay as you go system as is Medicare. Any “surplus” is put into the General Fund. And payroll taxes are regressive.
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Sure but they are getting the withholding back and with the tax credits in place many people get a good part of the SS tax back as well. It needs to be paid as most working Americans pay it. They must file a return and actually SEE they are paying taxes. Currently almost 50% of the population is off the tax rolls and they need to be put back on and they have to KNOW they are back on so that when the greedy slobs in Washington go after our money these folks will know they have something to lose as well.
Currently when tax increases are mentioned those who pay none don’t care because it doesn’t effect them and when tax cuts are talked about they are AGAINST them. Why? because being someone who pays NO taxes they cannot benefit from the tax cut so are against it (if I can’t have it then neither can they). If everyone paid then everyone would have a stake in what happens and the politicians would have a much more difficult time in this area.
As for SS, certain assumptions have to be made and among them is an ever expanding gap between workers and retirees as people live longer and the birth rate continues to drop. Sure you can raise taxes through the roof, means test so many after paying in all their lives get nothing, delay retirement age to close to when people die anyway and other gimmicky “fixes” but all you have left is a sham which is still referred to as SS but which is nothing more then another way for the pols to take our money so they can hand it out elsewhere to get themselves re elected. SS as we know it is dead and privatised accounts will be the norm within 15-20 years. The reason it’s taking so long to do the obvious is the liberals haven’t yet figured out how to sell the people on doing something they have so long demonized the right on wanting to do.
It is testimony to the great ignorance of the majority of the population that there is not a huge demonstrations in the streets calling for a total reform of this kind, a reform which would allow retired folks to live far better then they do now AND pass on what’s left to their loved ones.
I favor educating the public that the Ponzi scheme called SS really is an income tax. They have been sold a bill of goods that their SS contributions somehow go into their account when the fact is that once the contributions are made, they belong to the government, not them. The payroll tax generates tax revenue for the general fund. When it goes in the red, the government must come up with the money to pay the shortfall. If it is in the black, the government gets the "surplus" to spend as it pleases. Thus, the government will figure out ways to keep the system in the black.
As for SS, certain assumptions have to be made and among them is an ever expanding gap between workers and retirees as people live longer and the birth rate continues to drop.
The birthrate is not dropping. Our current fertility rate is 2.06 or just about at replacement level. And immigration fuels 75% of our population growth, the highest rate of any developed country on earth. We will add 130 million people to our population in the next 40 years. We have added 100 million since 1970 and 29 million since 2000.
No doubt the retirement age will be raised again for full benefits just like it was in 1983.
SS as we know it is dead and privatised accounts will be the norm within 15-20 years. The reason it’s taking so long to do the obvious is the liberals haven’t yet figured out how to sell the people on doing something they have so long demonized the right on wanting to do.
If it were only so. By 2030, 20 years from now, one in five Americans will be 65 or older, twice what is now. 10,000 Americans are retiring daily and will continue to do so over the next 20 years. SS is going to be around just to handle the 80 million retirees.
The liberals have no intention of privatizing SS. Besides being a legacy of FDR, it is a way to keep Americans dependent upon the government. It is a matter of control and power. One-third of retired Americans now rely on SS for all of their retirement income and two-thirds for more than half. Kerry has recently proposed a bill that will create a government 401K program run by the government. It is in addition to SS. The deductions would be automatic and be similar to the Government Thrift Plan for USG employees. The reality is that this is just another way to raise revenue.
It is testimony to the great ignorance of the majority of the population that there is not a huge demonstrations in the streets calling for a total reform of this kind, a reform which would allow retired folks to live far better then they do now AND pass on what’s left to their loved ones.
Ignorance plus being a Ponzi scheme. Those of us now receiving SS have received far more out of the system than we ever put into it. We are at the top of the Ponzi pyramid. There is a vested interest in keeping the system the way it is. The politicians play to the fears of the retired people making any discussion of privatization a dangerous game for anyone with the political courage to do so. I bet Obama's commission does not offer that as a solution to making SS solvent. Old people vote in greater numbers than young people. I am afraid that Congress will again kick the can down the road rather than fixing the problem. Look for them to suggest a VAT tax to fix our problems.